One warm spring afternoon in 1981, on the short walk home from the bus stop after school, I noticed something laying on the sidewalk: a black and white mechanical pencil marked "Sheaffer's" on the clip. It was my first mechanical pencil, and that little Sheaffer became my daily companion over the next few years as I filled journals, did my homework, and idly doodled my way through the rest of my schooling. I still have it today.
After 1 started collecting pencils in 1999 or so, my little hoard of Sheaffer pencils expanded. At first, I "fished with hand grenades:" Sheaffers would arrive in lots that included other pencils that interested me, and I would compare every new arrival to all of the others that resided in a shoebox. If a Sheaffer pencil that came in differed in any respect from what I had, I would hold onto it. Some day, I thought, I'll get them organized.
By the time I settled down to write The Catalogue of American Pencils in 2011, 1 had a shoebox full of Sheaffer pencils. With the help of Matt McColm, 1 sorted them into groups in order to present what I had accumulated in some semblance of order. The result was somewhat satisfying but by no means complete, and after the book was finished, back they went into that shoebox.
This story is from the April 2023 edition of PEN WORLD.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the April 2023 edition of PEN WORLD.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Lead, Follow, or Get Out of the Way: An Overview of Dip-less Desk Sets, Part III
Once dip-less desk sets became entrenched in the business world, they naturally proliferated as more companies got into the game.
The Inkwell and the Imagination
A history of the inkwell as a source of inspiration.
From EDC to OMG!
The Visconti Year of the Dragon limited edition collection pays tribute to the Chinese five-clawed dragon, which was reserved solely as representative of the Emperor and nobility.
Love Story
AP Limited Editions celebrates its 10th anniversary with pens in honor of its deep U.S. connection. Originally published in Vol. 29, No. 2 (February 2016).
The Magic Kingdom at Orlando's Sam Flax
In central Florida, a writing instruments and art supplies store carries on the Flax pen shop legacy.
Piloting My Way To Dromgoole's
Rice Village in Houston, Texas, is always buzzing with holiday shoppers in the weeks leading up to Christmas, so it was no surprise to me that not a single parking spot was available in front of family-owned Dromgoole's Fine Writing Instruments and Stationery store for its holiday shopping event on December 9, 2023.
The Ohio Pen Show
Begun more than 25 years ago, the Columbus, Ohio, Pen Show is one of the most respected among all North American pen shows.
These Snakes Don't Bite
The new BENU Viper Collection finds inspiration in the sinuous bodies of three snakes.
A Fountain Pen Scribe's Ode to a Typewriter
I stood there, just 15, clutching a $30 check from a magazine for something I'd written, the first ever for my writing, growing dizzy with images in my head of where I needed to be.
Introducing LeatherLuxePH
Raymund Nino Bumatay creates high-end leather pen cases with Filipino pride.